The FINANCIAL — “I was one of about only ten ladies driving a car in Tbilisi in the 80s,” said Manana, 56, who owned a Lada in Soviet Georgia. These days nobody reacts with surprise when seeing a lady at the wheel. Nonetheless not every vehicle suits women drivers.
The number of female drivers significantly increased during the last three years in Georgia. Only a few of them buy sports cars though. Women are more interested in comparatively small cars, with lower running costs, although in recent years more women have been seen driving jeeps.
“Automatic, easy parking, not too big, small jeep, city style, nice colour, models with all these parameters are called crossovers,” said Vakhtang Antadze, Marketing Manager of Iberia Business Group.
Almost 100% of Mercedes A class in Georgia are owned by females. But this model can hardly be called the most popular car.
“Volkswagen Crossover Tiguan is the bestselling and most popular model among female customers of IBG. The Audi Q5 is mainly popular among businesswomen. If we compare the current market to the last 2-3 years, the number of women owners of Volkswagen cars increased by 35% and of Audis – 20%,” noted Antadze.
Mitsubishi’s Pajero Io deserves the status of the people’s brand, as it fits all the requirements of Georgian women drivers.
“As a rule, every brand has its distinct type of customer, but the only brand I can select as the most generally demanded one is the 1998-2000 Pajero Io. The low price and the look of the Pajero is acceptable for most,” said David Petriashvili, Sales Manager of Mega Auto, auto seller company.
The advantage of Pajero Io is that it’s more durable on Georgian roads, which are still for the most part in poor conditions.
The Infiniti fx35 became quite popular among females who prefer big cars. Fx35 is very stylish and not too expensive.
“Peugeot 308 is an optimal model for the city,” said Ia Tabagari, Marketing Manager of Iberia Business Group.
“Ladies love the model because of its diverse interior and optimal size as a 4 door auto, which stipulates a comfortable drive in the city,” said Modebadze.
According to the latest data of Strada Auto Toyota Vitz is a very popular and favourite brand among models which can be bought for approximately 5,000 USD.
“If a female customer can afford more than 5,000 USD, about 7,000 USD – they mostly choose a Pajero Io, from 7-10,000 USD demand is mainly for Mercedes-Benz CLK. For 10-15,000 USD customers prefer to buy a Mercedes- Benz ML Jeep or BMW X5. By the way, I have to note that out of the last 20 customers 7 were women which I don’t think is a small figure,” said Otar Bakradze, Sales Manager of Strada Auto.
Georgian women pay great attention to the colour of their selected vehicle. Black, silver and white, these are the most popular colours among females in Georgia.
Recently the Georgian Government and Renault’s Executive Department signed an agreement which is aimed at promoting and implementing electric vehicles in Georgia. As the Renault- Nissan centre reports they made this memorandum in order to reduce CO2 emissions and the effects of climate warming. Who knows how Georgian lady drivers would take this innovation.
“First I have to see the model. It has to be special looking. If the price is acceptable and there aren’t any problems with the charging network, one might think it worth their while to change their vehicle. Moreover, petrol prices are increasing almost every two weeks,” said Salome, 25.
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